Jeremy Fisher

It’s a hard slog to be a singer songwriter in this country, and harder still to be successful at it. Add to that an artist that favors unusual instrumentation like the mandolin and ukulele and prefers to tour countries by bicycle. A nomadic musician who’s DIY ethic is so strong that his artistry extends past making music and playing multiple instruments to producing an accomplished, satirical web series, as well as creating and directing music videos for himself and other artists. You don’t just have a musical anomaly – you have a triple threat. A singer, songwriter and multi-faceted artist rarely seen. You have, Jeremy Fisher.

Canadian folk-pop troubadour Jeremy Fisher first broke onto the scene a decade ago, and since then his career has been on a steady upward trajectory. That momentum is bound to keep on building with the release of his latest album, Flood, due to hit digital retailers on October 26. The fourth LP from the two-time Juno nominee, it comes hot on the heels of a Fisher-created summer bicycle tour and a slew of video side projects from the multi-talented artist.

His first full-length since 2007's acclaimed Goodbye Blue Monday, the album finds Fisher exploring more ornate arrangements, with his acoustic pop songs fleshed out by a diverse array of instruments. Flood is the culmination of a whirlwind writing session, during which he cut over forty demos with help of a Roland 707 drum machine. Although most of these rhythm tracks were later replaced with real drums, the electronic percussion tracks helped to form the backbone of the album's upbeat, punchy sound. "To build dynamics" explains Fisher, "we mixed in mandolins, tenor guitars, open-tuned 12 strings, piano, timpani, and a huge concert bass drum -- all acoustic sounds piled on top of each other to create a sort of symphony that could swell in and out of the rhythm section."

You can hear this grandiose sound on the track, "Shine a Little Light," which uses a funeral as the inspiration for its life-affirming sing-along refrain. "Come Fly Away", the first single, is similarly joyous, with its breezy ukulele strumming, handclaps and vibrant chorus harmonies. The songs were written shortly after Fisher moved to Montreal, and the singer says that his new city helped to inspire the album's energetic style. "There is no place like it," he says, "it's so vibrant and out-going. The food is unbelievable, there is music everywhere, and people look you in the eye when you walk down the street."

The majority of the instruments were laid down by the songwriter himself at the Canterbury Music Company in Toronto, along with producer Hawksley Workman. This marks the second time that Fisher has collaborated with Workman, and the singer acknowledges that the producer had a major impact on the album's sound. "The thing I love about working with Hawksley is that it makes me not feel like a solo artist" he says. "I have sort of a big brother relationship with him. I want to impress him because he's such a virtuosic player. He can play everything better than I can. I'm competitive enough that it doesn't kill my confidence — it makes me actually want to step up and do better."

The Hamilton, ON-born singer has written each of his four albums while living in a different city. His bluesy, self-released debut, Back Porch Spirituals, came out in 2001, while he was living in Seattle. The follow-up, 2004's Let It Shine, was written in Victoria, and spawned the breakthrough single "High School." His third album, Goodbye Blue Monday, was released while living in Vancouver in 2007. It featured the hit "Cigarette," the accompanying homemade music video by Jeremy, has been viewed more than two million times on YouTube. The songwriter made his U.S. network television debut that same year, appearing two nights in a row on The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson.

In recent years, the ever-restless Fisher has undertaken yet more diverse projects: he started his own animated web series, “For Real with Jeremy Fisher,” and has created music videos for artists like Xavier Rudd, Hannah Georgas and Hawksley Workman. He also founded The Malahat Revue; an ensemble that includes fellow Canadian pop masters Said the Whale, Hannah Georgas and Aidan Knight. The collective toured British Columbia on bicycle over summer 2010 — an experience that harkened back to Fisher's previous cross-Canada bicycle tours.

For Fisher who continuously creates out of necessity, the challenge is not in trying to keep up with everything he has in the balance, it’s just embracing the experience of where the next adventure will take him.

For more information please contact: Catie Monck Wind-up Records 212.895.3140 cmonck@winduprecords.com